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National Planning Policy Framework

It is an honour to be called so early in this important debate, Mr Deputy Speaker. I wish to start by saying how much I salute the Government's aims in making planning more accessible for all. Most residents, and even some councillors and MPs, me included, find the current complexity of the canon of planning law impenetrable. The existing planning system has not worked. It has not managed to deliver the number of new homes we need, nor has it been flexible enough to meet the needs of business. Of course it has also generated an enormous amount of suspicion and hostility. Last month, my local council voted to withdraw its local development framework after the planning inspector, on the basis of the existing legislation, explicitly instructed it to include more greenfield sites in its plan.